Gryffindor At Heart
by cloverlover
Summary: She saw Padma's mouth twist, her eyes narrow, and in one quick, fluid motion, her twin had thrown the scarf under the table, stamping on it with both feet until it had been torn to shreds, the red and gold now reduced to unrecognizable scraps of tattered wool. Little did Parvati know that six years later, she would lay down her life for the one she loved...
1. Same Difference

Same Difference

"Oh Par, we've got to end up in Gryffindor together, we've just _got _to," said Padma, taking her twin pleadingly by the hand. Parvati didn't reply, and the identical, dark-haired twins fell silent, listening to the muffled, indistinct bumping of the Hogwarts Express as it rolled over the train tracks below. After a few awkward seconds, Padma tried again. "Par, I promise you, it's genetic. People from the same families always end up in the same House, so we'll be together, don't you worry."

Only a month ago, they had gotten their Hogwarts letters, and though Parvati and Padma had both been expecting them, it didn't mean they weren't immensely excited for what was to come. They had already gotten identical supplies at Diagon Alley, and Padma had even used the little pocket money she had left to buy both of them Gryffindor ties and scarves, proceeding to stuff one of each into Parvati's robes. Parvati protested that there was no need to waste money on Gryffindor things when they hadn't even been Sorted yet, but Padma stopped her with a noncommittal wave and a confident air about her. "_Honestly_," she told her in a firm tone, "you're always going on about not counting your owls before they arrive, but I'm sure of it, Par. We'll end up in Gryffindor, you'll see."

Despite the fact that Parvati was older than her sister (albeit only by a few minutes), she had always been the quieter one. Perhaps it was because they were always together, and Padma constantly overshadowed her with her intelligence. They had gone to a Muggle primary school, as most magical children did before attending a wizarding one such as Hogwarts, and Padma had always done better than Parvati in any task they were put to. Parvati had stopped complaining long ago about the never-ending attention and praise her sister got, and simply learnt to treat it as a consequence for having an intelligent sister. But sometimes, when Parvati was alone or lying awake at night, she would wonder what it would have been like if she didn't have a twin by her side.

Parvati emerged from her reverie and watched Padma's head loll on her shoulder as she slept. Parvati smiled and looked away, proceeding to stare out of the window and watch the hills roll past, wondering just what was going to happen next. She really did want to get into Gryffindor, just like her sister, but it wasn't like she was ever going to have the opportunity to tell her. Padma didn't care much for Parvati's thoughts, being the younger sister who always got what she wanted, and never let her twin fully voice her opinions.

Time passed quickly after the train stopped. They disembarked and joined the other first-years, who were then escorted by Hagrid to the Lake, where they oohed and aahed in wonder as the magnificent castle of Hogwarts came into view. A small pudgy boy called Neville found his pet toad as they entered the castle, and Parvati caught his eye, giving him a friendly smile. The boy started slightly, but after a moment of thought, decided to return it, looking rather timid as he did so.

Standing outside the Great Hall, they waited as the severe-looking woman called McGoogles (or something of the sort, anyway) swept out of the corridor. After a few tense moments of waiting in anticipation, the large oak doors to the Great Hall opened, and Parvati gasped at the sight. Padma grabbed her hand and pointed with the other. "_Look!_" Parvati looked up and gazed at the twinkling stars on the ceiling, then turned her head and took in the long tables with coloured banners hanging over them. "It's bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in _Hogwarts, A History,_" she saw a girl with exceedingly ugly teeth and very bushy hair say to the girl next to her. Padma was about to make another comment, but just then, the rest of the first-years began to walk forward, and the two obliged and followed suit.

They lined up next to the long teacher's table, all anxiously fidgeting as the rest of the school swiveled round to stare at them. Parvati had the distinct impression that the Slytherins didn't look like a friendly lot, but decided it was merely her own imagination. Professor McGonagall (as Parvati later discovered her real name to be) placed a small stool onto the platform, then a very old, pointed brown hat on top of it. Parvati knew that this was the Sorting Hat, but she hadn't expected it to be quite this old and frayed. She looked around and noticed that all eyes were on the hat, almost like everyone was expecting it to do something. She raised an eyebrow and watched.

For a moment, the hat was still, until Parvati noticed an almost imperceptible twitch. Her eyes widened. The Hat could _move! _Then it suddenly burst into song, and Parvati could only stare in astonishment as it sang through what she had assumed to be a rip in the Hat's brim.

The hall burst into claps and cheers when it was finished, and as they did, Parvati turned to her twin to find her grinning back. _This is it, _she saw Padma mouth. She tried to look excited and confident, hoping it looked as convincing as she wanted it to be. Meanwhile, Professor McGonagall quickly and efficiently progressed down the list, as student after student tried on the Sorting Hat and went to their respective tables. Parvati didn't like how loud the Sorting Hat was when it proclaimed the chosen House of the student, but she supposed it was all for show.

As Professor McGonagall reached 'MacDougal, Morag', Parvati began to rub the cloth of her robes between her thumb and forefinger, as she always did when she was nervous. She saw that Padma had a confident smile, however tight it seemed. She was obviously trying to hide her own anxiety. Feeling slightly abashed, Parvati attempted to do the same.

At last, Professor McGonagall looked up and said in a clear voice, "Patil, Padma." Padma looked behind and glanced at Parvati, who gave her an encouraging smile. She nodded stiffly and stepped up onto the platform, taking the hat and stuffing it onto her head. Parvati watched with bated breath, although she didn't know why, because the hat would obviously put her twin in the house she wanted…

Padma's Sorting took a lot longer than Parvati had expected. A few minutes passed. Parvati wanted to look around to see if there was a clock, just to see exactly how much time had gone by, but she couldn't tear her eyes away from her twin, who was becoming increasingly restless, mumbling under her breath, her chest rising and falling rapidly as she grew more agitated. She watched as Padma's fingers clenched at the edge of the chair, and Parvati could make out her words, as she and her twin shared a dash of twin telepathy like most did, "_Gryffindor… Gryffindor… Gryffindor…"_

The Hat bellowed its final decision.

Parvati gasped so loudly, the students around her stopped cheering for a moment to look at her. She hadn't noticed that her hands had been clapped over her mouth, eyes wide and staring at her twin, who had taken the hat off her head with an unreadable expression. The Ravenclaws clapped and cheered, applauding the new addition to their House, but Padma's stony features were subdued as she sat at the edge of the table, refusing to show any emotion.

"Patil, Parvati."

She tried to catch Padma's eye, hoping she would give a hint of how she currently felt, but could glean nothing from the lack of facial expression her twin was currently displaying. She tried mouthing her name, hoping she would take the hint and look at her, even if it was just a fleeting glance, but Padma stonily ignored her silent cries.

"Patil, _Parvati,_" said McGonagall severely, her voice raised a notch higher. Parvati snapped her head towards her. In her turmoil, she had forgotten that she was the next person to be Sorted. She took a deep breath and stepped onto the platform, suddenly aware of the multitude of eyes focused upon her as her shoes clicked softly on the wooden floorboards. She took a deep breath and sat down, taking the hat and placing it gingerly on her head, as if she were afraid of tearing it; it was a very old hat, after all. It slid over her eyes, but her nose managed to keep it from falling over her face entirely.

"Ah. I assume that was your _twin _just a moment ago?" said a low voice in her ear. Parvati jumped; the Hat's voice was rather unnerving.

_Yes, _she thought. Even in her head, she sounded terrified.

"Very… _interesting_," the Hat drawled. Parvati could tell that he was speaking slowly on purpose, just to unsettle her further. "You have quite a mind, I can see, oh yes, I can see _everything_ in here…" Parvati bit her lip, flustered.

"Well," continued the Hat, "you're not quite cunning or ambitious enough to be a Slytherin… and I can see you're relieved by that," he added, as Parvati gave a long sigh, "and you're not quite Hufflepuff, either…now that it's narrowed down to two Houses – "

_Put me in Ravenclaw with my sister, _thought Parvati desperately. _Please._

"But you want to be a _Gryffindor_, do you now?"

Parvati remained silent, attempting to clear all the thoughts from her head as she did so. She didn't know how she was supposed to answer such a question. Was the Hat testing her?

"Oh yes. You might not know it, but you're a Gryffindor at heart, you are…"

_No – _

"You definitely have the courage, oh yes, there's a great deal of that in this head of yours – "

_Please, I beg you – _

"Then I suppose I must put you in – "

_She'll kill me – _

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Parvati gulped and took the Hat off, looking towards the Gryffindor table, where people were already cheering for her and beckoning her to come to their table.

Parvati didn't know what to think. Her senses seemed to have gone numb. McGonagall was already calling out the next name, but she couldn't hear her; Parvati glanced over at her sister, but as soon as their eyes met, Padma looked away. The Gryffindors were standing up now, some were even calling her name, the noise slowly rising to a hearty chant.

Parvati watched in stunned silence as Padma took out the Gryffindor scarf she had bought for herself. She saw Padma's mouth twist, her eyes narrow, and in one quick, fluid motion, her twin had thrown the scarf under the table, stamping on it with both feet until it had been torn to shreds, the red and gold now reduced to unrecognizable scraps of tattered wool. Lifting her head high, Padma looked at her twin once more. As she stared into those dark, defiant eyes, which were almost identical to hers, yet different all at once, Parvati knew she wasn't going to forget this for a long time.

**Author's Note:**

**I know I haven't posted in quite a while, but I got this idea today in Geography. (As you can see, I'm very attentive when I'm at school. Aren't I the perfect student?)**

**After hours of copious research on Harry Potter Wiki and perusing of the books (because I **_**insist **_**on sticking to canon), I managed to draw up a plan and begin the story. This is going to be chaptered, but I don't plan for it to be extremely long. Hope you enjoyed it, please R&R if you did!**


	2. The Favour

The Favour

The air was fresh but chilling to the core, as it often was when winter began. Hogwarts had not changed much, but it had already been four years since Parvati and Padma had first entered the enchanted castle. Of course, as time passed, each twin had made their own friends in their respective Houses; Parvati had become quite chummy with a fellow Gryffindor named Lavender, who giggled with her about girly things like makeup and (more often than not) boys. Though Lavender was a drama queen most of the time, she proved to be extremely loyal, which was a quality Parvati had always admired. There were a few other girls in her dormitory she was also on good terms with, such as Hermione Granger and Fay Dunbar.

Without her twin, Parvati could finally show her true self; she discovered she actually had a sense of fun and a girlish tendency to gossip, and consequently became much less serious than her studious sister. Parvati was at this point utterly convinced that the Hat had put her in the right place. In contrast, Padma had steadily become quieter as the years went by, only speaking during class when the teacher picked her to answer a question, and spending much of her time studying with her fellow Ravenclaws.

Parvati and Padma weren't enemies, but they weren't exactly friends either. No one knew of their animosity, since none of them dared show it for fear of exposing themselves to unwanted rumour and speculation. They resolved to nod at each other when the passed each other in the corridors, civilised and respectful, only speaking to each other when necessary. Otherwise, Parvati had no idea what her sister was up to, but had assumed that she had some friends, since she was always with a different group of people every time they saw each other. Like a true Ravenclaw, Padma kept to herself, and Parvati hated it.

Meanwhile, the Yule Ball was steadfastedly approaching, and Parvati had no idea who she was to go with. At first she thought she didn't have to worry, since all the boys and girls in her year were nervous and hesitant about asking whoever they fancied, but as the weeks went on she began to panic. Even Lavender had been asked by Seamus only two weeks after they had been informed of the Ball, and Lavender had gratefully accepted with her trademark high-pitched giggle, as Seamus kissed her hand like a gentleman. Out of pity for her friend, Lavender had offered to set Parvati up with someone else, but Parvati waved her off and said she would be able to manage on her own.

Parvati suddenly wondered who Hermione was going with. She had meant to ask her during one of her late-night chats with Lavender in their dormitory, but Hermione unfortunately had her nose in a book, and Lavender and Parvati both knew better than to disturb her quality reading time from past experience. She shrugged to herself, dismissing the thought.

Parvati knew she wasn't the only one who didn't have a partner yet. There were still a small handful of people who were still 'single', as she liked to put it, but most of them were complete idiots like Crabbe and Goyle, and Parvati didn't fancy being compared to _them _at all. The only person left who she would actually consider was Harry Potter, but of course he wouldn't ask her; Parvati almost laughed at the notion. He was so well-known, being The Boy Who Lived, and a Triwizard Champion to boot. There was no doubt that many girls were already head over heels in love with him, and they were probably much prettier than the likes of Parvati. With so many girls to choose from, he could have picked anyone he liked, and the chance of that particular person being Parvati was a very distant possibility. On second thoughts, Parvati was actually mildly surprised that he hadn't asked Hermione. After all, they had been friends for so long. And if not Harry, then why didn't Hermione go with Ron…?

She discussed this matter with Lavender as they approached the common room. Lavender emitted another giggle as Parvati suggested her theory. "What an idea!" she said. "Harry isn't bad at all, but I don't think Hermione would go with him, they're just friends, aren't they?" Parvati nodded in agreement, as she often did when Lavender was making up one of her many gossip theories. "What about Ron?" she said mildly.

To her surprise, Lavender gave a dramatic sigh. "Oh, _Ron. _I'm _so_ surprised he hasn't asked anyone yet, I would have gone with him if he asked _me, _but I suppose Seamus isn't a bad choice…" Parvati skillfully tuned out as Lavender launched into a melodramatic rant about her date, punctuating her sentiments with loud gasps, sweeping gesticulations and a great deal of giggling.

By the time Lavender had finished her rant, Parvati successfully managing not to cringe the whole way, they had approached the portrait hole. They quickly said the password and the Fat Lady let them through. As soon as they entered, Lavender opened her mouth again, and Parvati mentally braced herself for another long tirade, but just then, Harry himself approached the two of them with a peculiar expression on his face.

"Well, look who's here," Parvati muttered, not unkindly, out of the corner of her mouth. Both girls turned to him expectantly, Lavender quickly snapping her mouth shut and toying with her already curly hair, in what she thought looked flirtatious.

Harry stopped in front of the two of them and paused. Parvati thought for a moment that Harry had forgotten what to say. His mouth worked for a few seconds, then he blurted suddenly, "Parvati? Will you go to the ball with me?"

Her first reaction was that it was most definitely a joke. She and Lavender looked at each other with raised eyebrows. Parvati turned away and glanced at Ron, who appeared to be lost in thought as he stared into the Gryffindor fire. Lavender was evidently shocked as well, as she had stopped batting her eyelashes simultaneously at Harry and Ron, which made her look like she had a great deal of dust in her eyes. Gradually, Parvati realised that Harry wasn't putting up an act, and the truth dawned on her. _He wasn't joking._

A bubble of excitement rose in her stomach and fought to escape, and Parvati giggled, sounding rather Lavender-esque. Harry Potter had asked her to the Yule Ball! Not Lavender, not Hermione, but _her!_

Harry decided to be patient about it and wait it out until her giggling subsided. When she finally did, she realised she hadn't answered his question. She blushed. "Yes, all right then." Who would have _known_?

"Thanks," said Harry, and Parvati thought she saw his eyes dart to the ceiling with a look of relief on his face, but it vanished as soon as it had come. He turned to Lavender, who was giving Parvati a look that plainly said _Oh dear Merlin, I can't believe it!_ "Lavender — " she quickly looked at him with a comical deer-in-the-headlights expression, still coyly twirling her hair, "will you go with Ron?"

Parvati saw a flicker of dismay flit past Lavender's face. "She's going with Seamus," said Parvati helpfully, and Lavender gave her an annoyed look. Parvati shrugged, her shoulders coming up and down so surreptitiously only her best friend would notice. It wasn't like Lavender could go to the Ball with two people at once, anyway.

Lavender's eyes sparkled, and Parvati caught on. Both of them giggled once again, despite the fact that Lavender's sounded slightly forced. After all, Seamus and Harry were friends, and if word got out that Lavender wasn't altogether pleased that she didn't get the date she _really _wanted, trouble would ensue. Parvati expected she was thinking about how unfortunate it was that Seamus had already asked her. Harry, meanwhile, was looking distinctly fed up.

"Can't you think of anyone who'd go with Ron?" he said desperately; his eyebrows knotted together as he looked at them. Parvati saw his startling green eyes look back at Ron, who was quietly humming a tune as he watched the flames of the Gryffindor fire dance about, absentmindedly playing wizard chess against himself at the same time. "What about Hermione Granger?" she suggested after a few seconds, tilting her head to the side. Lavender gave her another look. Both Parvati and Harry pretended not to notice.

"She's going with someone else."

Parvati tried and failed miserably to hide her astonishment; his response had not been what she had expected. "Ooooh — _who?" _She looked at Lavender, who gave a little shrug. Did Hermione have a secret friend both of them hadn't heard about?

Harry shrugged as well. "No idea," he said. He pressed on. "So what about Ron?"

Parvati thought at this point that Harry was being a little extreme about things. He was acting a lot more distraught than he needed to be; why couldn't he be happy that he had already gotten a date for his own? Why couldn't Ron ask a girl out himself? Then again, they were best friends, and Harry was probably just doing him a favour…

A _favour…_

Her thoughts spun, connected, and clicked into place. "Well…" said Parvati slowly, "I suppose my sister might…Padma, you know…in Ravenclaw. I'll ask her if you like."

Her heart was beating quite quickly. It was a plan, a bad one at that, but a plan nonetheless. If Harry said yes and Padma went with Ron to the Yule Ball, then things might just be all right between them. Ron was one of the better people who still hadn't gotten a date, and Parvati thought that her twin would at least be grateful, if not completely overjoyed that she didn't have to wait for someone to ask her. Parvati didn't like to admit it, but she missed her sister dearly. If her plan worked, would they ever be the same again?

"Yeah, that would be great," said Harry. "Let me know, will you?"

Parvati smiled and turned, making sure her long black hair fanned out like a dark silk curtain, and from the corner of her eye, she could already see a small smile on Harry's face, though she wasn't sure whether it was because he had her as a date, or because he had helped Ron. She decided on the former. She made for the girls' dormitories with Lavender following behind, looking just a tad dejected.

Her insides were repeatedly flipping over and somersaulting, partly out of excitement for going to the Yule Ball with Harry, and a touch of nervousness, because of the favour she had just done for her twin. She hoped Ron would be a good match for Padma. Perhaps, if they had a good time at the Yule Ball together, Padma would thank her for setting them up, and then maybe, just maybe, things would be all right again…

Her next thought made her stomach twist uncomfortably. How was she going to tell her about it?

**Author's Note:**

**Fay Dunbar is, at least according to Harry Potter Wiki, some girl who shared a dormitory with Parvati, Lavender and Hermione, along with a ginger girl whose name was never mentioned. I'm not sure if she actually appeared in the books, though, but I'm almost sure she did in the computer game for **_**Chamber of Secrets.**_


	3. Listening To Logic

Listening to Logic

Despite the fact that Gryffindors were supposed to be brave, Parvati didn't end up speaking to Padma in person about her newly arranged date for the Ball. It was just as well, because Padma didn't seem too happy about it when Morag McDougal, who Parvati had asked to pass the message on, told her. Parvati knew this because Padma made a huge show of whispering loudly to her Ravenclaw friends in Charms, who sat behind the two of them. Professor Flitwick insisted that the twins sat together, because it apparently made it easier for him to tell them apart when they were right next to each other. Parvati didn't blame him, but it was annoying that she couldn't sit with Lavender.

"He's so _inconsiderate_," whined Padma, as Professor Flitwick droned on about Summoning Charms. "But I don't have a choice, do I? We've only got a week left, and _everyone else _has been asked to the Ball…"

Parvati thought Padma was being rather unfair, not to mention insensitive. Eloise Midgen, a Gryffindor with an unhealthy helping of acne, had heard Padma speak from a few desks away, and was failing to hide her anger as her cheeks bloomed, further accentuating the multitude of pimples on her face. Meanwhile, Padma's Ravenclaw friends who nodding in sympathy. Mandy Brocklehurst even patted her on the shoulder. Parvati turned away, rolling her eyes.

But Parvati herself couldn't contain her excitement either, and spent the next few nights discussing the Ball with Lavender Brown – at least, until Hermione told them it was much too late for gossip and forced them to shut up and go to sleep. It was only until the last three nights that they actually went to bed without talking to each other for at least an hour, since Lavender insisted that she didn't want dark circles under her eyes ("I need my beauty sleep, you see").

At last, it was the night of the Yule Ball. Parvati had intended to find Padma so they would meet their dates together, but on second thought decided it was a bit much all at once. Instead, she waited for Harry at the foot of the stairs, dressed in a bright pink dress. Parvati was thankful that her parents had been sensible enough not to send her and Padma matching dress robes; she didn't want people to mix them up, and anyway, it would have been rather awkward if their dates couldn't tell them apart. Lavender had spent hours braiding Parvati's hair with gold thread, and had done a good job of it; she had also lent Parvati some golden bangles to match, which were now hanging loosely on her thin, delicate wrists.

As Harry emerged, he came down the steps and saw her at once. Parvati saw his eyes widen slightly as he took her in; he didn't look bad either, she decided. Harry's hair was a lot less messier than usual, but Parvati could tell that he had put some effort into looking his best. Then she saw the shadowy figure behind him and her stomach sank.

Ron Weasley was dressed in the ugliest, frilliest dress robes she could imagine, looking highly disgruntled. Parvati noticed that his collar was frayed at the edges; perhaps he had used a Severing Charm? Her heart raced. She hadn't expected Ron to show up like this. What would Padma think?

"You – er – look nice," said Harry, a little stiffly. Parvati graciously accepted the accolade, deciding to ignore how Harry had sounded more polite than complimentary. "Thanks," she said, and turned to Ron, trying not to wince as her eyes fell upon his dress robes again. "Padma's going to meet you in the entrance hall."

"Right," said Ron, looking around. Parvati had the distinct impression that he wasn't feeling altogether comfortable, which she could understand, but he looked as if he were afraid someone might see him. It couldn't be Padma, because if he really did care about looking good for his date, he would have picked better robes in a trice. It had to be someone else, but who?

She hoped that he would make up for his atrocious dressing with his personality, but she highly doubted the prospect of Ron suddenly becoming a gentleman overnight. "Where's Hermione?" he said suddenly. Parvati shrugged; she had asked Hermione to go to the Ball with her back in their dormitory, but Hermione had refused, saying she wasn't ready just yet. "Shall we go down then, Harry?"

"Okay," said Harry.

They arrived at the entrance hall. Parvati quickly spotted her sister and made to approach her, but Padma had already seen them, and was walking towards them. As their paths crossed, Parvati made an awkward turn so she could lead her twin to Ron, who was staring at his feet. "Hi," said Padma, who was wearing the sharp turquoise robes their parents had sent her. She was wearing silver teardrop earrings and a simple diamond necklace to match. Parvati had to admit that her twin looked just as beautiful as she did.

Padma's expression, however, was not one of excitement or enthusiasm, and it darkened as she saw Ron in his dress robes. "Don't you look…dashing," she said sarcastically, and Ron looked abashed, if not downright embarrassed. Parvati thought for a moment that Padma's eyes had darted accusingly in her direction. Was she blaming her for setting her up with Ron?

"Hi," said Ron, deliberately avoiding Padma's eyes. He looked around at the crowd surrounding them, and Parvati's suspicions were confirmed as he suddenly hid behind Harry, bending his knees so his tall figure wouldn't be seen. Parvati turned to see who was it Ron was hiding from, but inwardly sighed as she saw who. _Of course._

Fleur Delacour was passing by in shining silver-grey satin robes, aloof yet confident, a shimmering aura surrounding her perfect features. Parvati had no idea what made her so entrancing to the boys, but they were all dropping their things and staring at her, as if she were a goddess on earth. Padma had also noticed Ron's reaction, and was narrowing her eyes in obvious distaste. When Fleur was at least ten feet away, Ron straightened up again. "Where _is _Hermione?" he said again. Parvati thought he was acting rather oddly. Why did he care so much?

"See you in a minute," she and Harry said simultaneously to Ron and Padma, as Professor McGonagall called for the champions to lead the first dance. Parvati tried to look convincing, but her smile slipped as her twin glared at her. She noticed that Padma and Ron were standing at least a foot apart, not looking at each other. Parvati reassured herself that things would be all right, but now she wasn't so sure.

"Hi, Harry!" said a familiar voice. "Hi, Parvati!" She turned to look in Krum's direction, then saw the girl he had asked to the Ball. Her mouth fell open in disbelief. _Hermione? _she mouthed silently. Her voice seemed to have stopped working for a moment. Hermione didn't look like her usual self, but she was recognizable enough. And Merlin, she was beautiful. Parvati had the feeling that Fleur wasn't the only person the boys were staring at now.

A slow, rhythmic waltz began to play, and the champions took their dates by the hand to start dancing. Parvati was highly confident about her dancing skills; her parents had always stressed the importance of a girl knowing how to dance. She steered Harry around the ballroom, who was slightly awkward on his feet, but soon they had established a steady rhythm, twirling and stepping left and right as the rest of the students danced around them. Parvati tried to catch Harry's eye, but instead of looking back at her, his gaze was directed towards the top table. She glanced in the same direction, and failed to hide her disappointment.

Ron was sitting down, narrowing his eyes at Hermione as she spun past him, giggling as Krum tipped her backwards and pulled her up again, catching her neatly at the waist, while Padma sat two feet away from him, her hands in her lap, looking extremely dismayed. Parvati was about to ask Harry if they could sit down, not wanting to upset her twin further, but Harry had conveniently seen Percy gesturing towards him to sit down, and they obliged. Padma was shooting glances at Parvati the whole time, but Parvati decided not to return the gaze. She didn't think she could face her twin at the moment.

When the Weird Sisters came on stage, Parvati instantly sat up, and from what she could see in her peripheral vision, so had Padma. They were both avid fans of the band, and Parvati knew that both of them desperately wanted to dance. It had been so long since Parvati had listened to the Weird Sisters, and now was her chance. She quickly turned to Harry. "Come on, we're supposed to dance!"

Harry let her take him by the hand, and soon they were dancing slowly to the music. His hands were sweating slightly, she noticed, and he didn't seem to know where to put them. She gripped one hand tightly so he wouldn't be able to let go, and placed it firmly on her waist, before taking his other hand and leading him to the right. After a few minutes of clumsy swaying, the song ended. Harry sighed, and Parvati thought disturbingly that he sounded relieved. "Let's sit down, shall we?" he suggested.

Just then, the Weird Sisters began a new song, and Parvati's heart skipped a beat – she suddenly had a very hazy memory of a seven-year-old version of herself, standing side-by-side with her twin as they sang into hairbrushes in their shared bedroom before collapsing into giggles. She glanced at Padma, who wouldn't look at her. Did she remember it too?

"Oh — but — this is a really good one!" she said imploringly, tugging Harry's sleeve. But Harry's expression told her that he had had enough. "No, I don't like it," he said finally. Her face fell.

They sat down again, but this time, Harry was sitting between Ron and Padma, who had increased the distance between themselves as the Ball went on. Since there was no space next to Ron, Parvati had no choice but to sit between Harry and Padma, looking down at her feet as she did. She suddenly noticed that despite Padma's stony expression, her foot was jiggling in time to the music. Parvati wanted to catch her eye just then, perhaps even say, "You remember this, right?" but didn't know how Padma would reply. She bit back her words and remained silent.

"May I have your arm?"

She looked up. A boy from Beauxbaxtons was standing in front of her, his palm outstretched. Parvati stood up, then glanced back. "You don't mind, do you?" she said. She had intended her words to be directed towards both Harry and Padma, but only Harry replied. "What?" he said, looking up from his conversation with Ron. Parvati felt a rush of resentfulness. "Oh never mind," she snapped.

The boy from Beauxbaxtons turned out to be a very good dancer, and she let him take the lead for a while as she lost herself in her thoughts. Parvati couldn't wait for the Ball to end. She also had a feeling of dread; what was Padma going to say, assuming that she said anything to her after the Ball? Parvati knew she had made a huge mistake of setting Ron up with Padma from the moment she saw him in those awful dress robes. Logic should have told her that Ron wasn't going to be a good date; firstly because he seemed to be more concerned about Hermione than anyone else, and also because he hadn't even asked Padma out in the first place, Harry had done that for him. Then again, Parvati had never really listened to her logical side.

After what seemed like hours, the Ball finally ended. Parvati detached herself from the boy before he could even ask for her name. She didn't want to know him, she didn't care, she just wanted to go back to her room, curl up and perhaps cry from her stupidity. She rushed up the stairs two at a time, not caring how ungainly or unladylike she looked, but just then, a firm hand gripped her wrist. She whipped around. It was Padma.

Without preamble, her twin was standing in front of her, hissing at Parvati in the face, "You set me up, didn't you, Parvati?" she said accusingly. "You told Ron to go with me to make me look like a fool! How _dare_ you!"

Parvati opened her mouth in protest, but before the words came out of her mouth, she felt a hand connect sharply with her cheek. She managed to catch herself before she fell over from shock or pain, she couldn't tell.

Parvati's eyes were watering so much from the impact, she didn't dare look at Padma. _I didn't set you up, _she wanted to say. _I thought I was doing you a favour. _But she knew Padma would never listen. She never did. She could only watch in silence as Padma turned and headed in the other direction, and she put a hand unconsciously to her stinging cheek as she felt the part where Padma had slapped her.

_I only wanted to make things right._


	4. The Shield

The Shield

Parvati was, once again, acting on pure instinct. She wasn't afraid anymore; she was too absorbed in the battle to feel fear and cowardice. Racing through the corridor, spells were thrown at her left and right as the dust and debris of Hogwarts fell around her, shrouding her vision and clogging up her throat, but she had no time to blink or cough. The place that had been her home for almost seven years was rapidly falling to pieces. She dodged and ducked, retaliating with frenzied cries of all the deadliest hexes and jinxes she knew, but every time a curse narrowly missed her, she couldn't help but worry where Padma was.

Since the night of the Yule Ball, Padma had never spoken to Parvati again. For the first few weeks, Parvati had tried countless times to reconcile with her, dismissing her homework and waiting outside the Ravenclaw common room, just to see her twin and perhaps try to explain. Her attempts were to no avail; Padma only reserved three reactions for her sister, and that was either a look of utmost contempt, unadulterated loathing, or acting as if she wasn't there. After a few months of the same treatment and many sleepless, tearful nights, Parvati realised that she had to accept the reality that her twin was ignoring her once and for all. And in the midst of the Final Battle, Parvati realised she had never missed her twin more dearly.

The floor shook as yet another wall collapsed into rubble. Parvati heard people screaming, but she knew she couldn't stop it from happening; her feeling of helplessness drastically increased. The air was filled with chaos, cries of the fallen and the victors standing over them, Death Eaters screaming Unforgivables in all directions, the unmistakable rushing sound of spells as they were directed towards their victims. Even the portraits were yelling amidst the havoc, shaking their fists and shouting words of encouragement no one could hear in the midst of utter confusion. But where was Padma?

Her senses were working in overdrive; her hand seemed to be moving of its own accord, shooting spells whenever she saw a Death Eater, the jets of light emitting from her wand often hitting their mark. Parvati had always had a sharp eye for aiming. Meanwhile, Dean was next to her, furiously dueling with Dolohov, who had Travers by his side. In an unspoken agreement, they separated slightly, Dolohov snarling as he hit Dean with multiple curses, while Travers took Parvati on. She only managed to duck as slashed his wand through the air. She and Dean had no time to look at each other or even help each other out, but both of them acknowledged that they were in this together, as were the entire DA and the rest of Hogwarts, fighting for their lives. But she couldn't see Padma amongst the crowd that was Dumbledore's Army… her twin had to be here!

Parvati realised with a jolt that Travers was a better dueler than the rest, casting curse after curse in rapid succession, and Parvati could only block him with mediocre attempts at Shield Charms, which she had never managed to perfect. Her movements slowed as exhaustion enveloped her thoughts; she couldn't think straight.

Just as she was about to lose hope, Peeves swooped overheard with a gleeful shout, dropping Snargaluff pods down onto the Death Eaters. Parvati had time to get out of the way as the wriggling plants rained upon the Death Eaters, who screamed and scratched at their heads as they fell. Parvati only had time to catch her breath just for a second, and suddenly noticed one of the pods wriggling in mid-air. She instantly knew, looking down and seeing three pairs of feet, that Harry, Ron and Hermione were by her side, hiding under the Invisibility Cloak. Her heart leapt and she began to duel furiously again, suddenly consumed with a new energy, her blows full of renewed vigour.

"Someone's invisible there!" shouted a masked Death Eater, pointing at the air space where Harry, Ron and Hermione stood. Dean reacted quickly and shouted, "_Stupefy!_" before the Death Eater could snap his attention back to whoever he was trying to attack. The Death Eater fell with an audible _crunch _as he landed on a fallen brick. Dolohov yelled in anger and disbelief; Parvati spotted her chance and cried, "_Petrificus Totalus!"_ Travers toppled backwards and lay on the floor, stiff as a rod, and was promptly trampled upon by a crowd of friends and foes who had just come storming in, as they, too, began to duel.

"LET'S GO!" Harry bellowed. Parvati could see the desperation in his features, his fearlessness. His hair was in his face, and his glasses were half-shattered, but he didn't seem to care. He ran in the other direction, Ron and Hermione following suit, charging towards a crowd of Death Eaters and blasting curses at them in his outrage. Parvati made to follow them, but stopped in her tracks. Then she saw it.

Padma was backed up against a shattered window, one hand raised to defend herself, the other swishing frantically at Thorfinn Rowle, who had his wand pointed towards her, poised and ready to strike. Parvati could tell her sister was panicking from the spells she was failing to cast; Padma was so overcome with terror, her hands were shaking, her spells failing to work as they spilled in a jumble from her trembling lips. Parvati saw the Death Eater's mouth curve up into a sneer, and saw him raise his wand…

Before she knew what she was doing, Parvati was running towards them, screaming a strangled battle cry…

Time slowed. The noise around her reached a rapid decrescendo; she couldn't hear her own voice anymore…

Then she was in midair as she jumped and threw out her chest, spreading her arms wide and landing to face her sister. Padma cowered against the window, disrupting several small glass shards, which promptly toppled over the windowsill and fell into the depths below. Her twin's wide, terrified brown eyes stared back into Parvati's, and she thought with amusement that after all this time, Padma was finally playing the role of the younger sister. As their eyes met, Parvati suddenly thought back to that last time they had done so, all those years ago after they had been parted by the Sorting Hat. It seemed so far away now, a distant, hazy memory.

But it didn't matter anymore. She didn't care. She was beyond caring.

In that split second when their gazes had connected, Padma had suddenly recognized her, suddenly realised what Parvati was doing, and her mouth fell open in shock, in protest, in horror. Padma looked over Parvati's shoulder and saw something Parvati couldn't see behind her, and she heard the high-pitched scream, "PAR! NO!" Then, a pair of thin arms wrapped tightly around her waist as Padma tried to pull her away from their impending fate.

Parvati heard Rowle shout indistinctly, and knew the end was near. But nothing else would register in her mind, which had gone completely blank except for one, solitary thought.

_She called me Par. And she's holding me._

In spite of herself, she smiled_._

_That's all I need._

She closed her eyes and held on tight as time sped up again, and her last thought was of Padma as the world grew dark, then glowed a blinding green, and she felt herself floating away as the world dissipated into nothingness.

_fin_

**Author's Note:**

**If you want more Parvati, try my other story **_**The Remembrall, **_**in which Parvati visits Neville in the Hospital Wing so she can give him his Remembrall back, as well as share a few comforting words.**

**I just love tragedies, though. I spent ages deciding whether to kill Parvati or Padma off, because both seemed to end with similar impacts, but decided on Parvati in the end, simply so I could write that last paragraph which I'm extremely proud of.**

**Out of all the stories I've written, I don't think I've ever been so satisfied with one like this – and that's saying something, if you look at my profile! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I did writing it, and show your appreciation by reviewing, of course!**


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